Every Stair We Climbed was Worth It! And Same Goes for Every Pastry We Ate...Worth It!

Throughout our travels in Europe, J-Sak and I have discovered the free, 2 hour, Sandman walking tours...almost every major European city has them and are usually advertised at hostels. We have tried to grab as many of these tours as possible...one, because they're free...two, because they're a great way to get acquainted with the city and know the important history...and three, the guides are usually locals who know what they are talking about! Our first morning in Paris, we decided to take advantage of such a tour. We arrived late, thinking we were going to miss the tour altogether...but we were good. We didn't realized exactly how big Paris' metro system is and how many stairs and passage ways you must walk to transfer lines! No wonder the French can eat as many pastries as they do and remain skinny!

Me and the metro...conquering it bit by bit!

A pre-tour Snacky McSnackerson...of nuts.

We toured the main sights and then Jeni and I were able to pick out exactly which ones we wanted to see in more depth. Also, after the tour, our guide invited the group to join him at a restaurant to try some traditional French dishes...most everyone tried the duck and it was delicious. We shared a table with an Aussie couple (of course) who happened to have lived in Timmins, Ontario for a couple of years, prior to traveling Europe. They were both engineers and got jobs working in Ontario and up north. They were interesting to chat with as they had never experienced snow in Australia and told us about how they LOVED all the winter activities around Timmins. We couldn't help but laugh when the Aussie guy told us about the first time he traveled, by small plane, to a work site up in the N.W.T., he couldn't believe how expansive the fog cover was when looking down on the ground from the window of the plane. His boss apparently just shook his head and told him that what he thought was "fog", was actually snow! Haha!

After lunch, Jeni and I walked the Champs Élysées, which is one of he biggest avenues in Paris, with some of the most expensive shopping in the world. Champs Élysées leads to the Arc de Triomphe and is the final couple of kilometers of the Tour de France. Yes all, Jeni and I did drop some dough while walking the Champs Élysées! We bee-lined it straight for the Adidas store...and it was the koolest, biggest and craziest Adidas store ever! We both bought some French soccer socks, they're mighty kool. 

Ready to get her shop on! Hello Adidas!

The Arc de Triomphe at dusk

We then headed for the Arc de Triomphe, which is one of the most spectacular monuments I have ever seen. It was commissioned by Napoleon in 1806 to commemorate his victories and is also home to the body of the Unknown Soldier, buried under the Arc to pay tribute to all who died in WW I. Every evening at 6:30, a large flame is lit next to the Unknown Soldier, and we were fortunate to be at the Arc during that time. We ventured to the top of the Arc at sunset and had amazing views of all of Paris! Jeni got some great photos and we saw the Eiffel Tower all lit up. It is really difficult to put into words what we saw at the top...but it was spectacular and hard to believe that the two of us were all the way in Paris, France staring out at a great sea of lights. It was probably the most excited I've seen Jeni on our whole trip.

View from on top of the Arc

ShizZaM!

After the Arc...we headed back towards our hostel and stopped at a chilled out cafe for wine and the most delicious creme brûlée we have ever tasted! Day one: success!

Day two of Paris was even more full. The Louvre!! Oh my gawd, The Louvre! First of all, do you all know how big that freakin' museum is?! It would take days to see all the exhibits! I knew it was big...but I didn't know it was that big. Also, the line up to get in was basically as big as the museum...2 hours to wait...but Mona was calling our names! By the time J- Sak and I reached the inside and scurried to see the Mona Lisa, we were tired! Mona...she was what I expected...but great to meet her nonetheless. She was swarmed by hungry tourists...a big cloud of people taking pictures. So, this is one thing that really bugs me about certain tourists: taking pictures when picture taking is not allowed, or using a flash when not allowed. You know how many people were going flash crazy at Mona?! Use your eyes. I doubt you'll forget her.

The line up for the Louvre. Where's Waldo?!

There were so many fabulous exhibits at the Louvre. I was particularly fascinated by the Mesopotamia exhibit that featured artifacts from 7000-1500 BC. BC...wow!! Amazing. After 3 hours inside we couldn't handle it anymore. We were feeling the exhaustion of being bombarded with thousands of people 24/7 and the overwhelming nature of the Louvre. Time for a pastry break and change of scenery...

So tired in the Louvre...we needed sugar, badly!

We maneuvered our way towards Notre Dame...constantly dodging in and out of clusters of people. In a city of 2.5 million, plus tons of tourists, we were beginning to get antsy. The building of Notre Dame started in 1163, was completed by the mid-14th century and is a huge and stunning church. Jeni and I wanted to climb to the top, but we arrived too late in the day. Secretly though, I think we both were a bit relieved because our legs were beginning to feel like lead. That night we went to a creperie for dinner...so delicious!  

The fabulous Notre Dame!

Side view of Notre Dame

Our third day in Paris we were taking an afternoon train to Bordeaux, so we had the morning to do more exploring. Catacombes!! Another 1.5 hour wait, but it was worth it! By the late 1700s Paris' cemeteries were overflowing and bones began to be exhumed and placed into 3 disused quarries. One of the quarries, created in 1810, is today known as the Catacombes. We traveled 130 steps underground and walked a kilometer and a half through tunnels stacked with thousands of bones. It was creepy and fascinating, and I definitely recommend seeing it if you travel to Paris.

Catacombes

Piles and piles of bones

We then made our way to the train station to hop our train to wine country: Bordeaux in the southwest. One last push through the hordes of pushy people...10 minutes to catch our train...we are in coach # 9...it literally takes us 10 minutes to walk the length of our train and squeeze through all the other travelers. 

We made it! Exhausted doesn't begin to describe our tiredness...Paris took us for all we were worth but it was worth all the line ups, tourists, snooty Frenchies and scum hole of a hostel! Europe wouldn't have been the same without a visit!